After a few days of rocking our horses, we arrived at the World Tree Forest, where the land of the elves was located.
　The forest was so vast that it was impossible to see.
　The trees in front of us could be described as a sea of trees.

　Günther explains.

'The World Tree Forest is also known as the Forest of No Return.'

　Hearing those words, I muttered to myself, "I see.

　It's true that the dense trees are appropriate for the nickname.

It's just like the sea of trees on Fuji.

　That's my honest opinion.

'Fuji tree line?'

　Sati the maid asks.

'It's the name of a sea of trees in the far south, in a country called Nihon.

'Oh, you're Japanese? The master loves that country, doesn't he? He talks about it a lot.

Well, I do miss it.

What kind of place is this Fuji tree line?

It's a suicide spot.

　And if I was honest with you, Satie would be frightened.

If you go in there without a compass, you'll never come back.

　And I'll tell you in a roundabout way.

　By the way, it is said that the compass goes out of order in the sea of trees at Fuji, but it is a myth.
　If you prepare in advance and carry a compass with you, you won't get lost.

　I had a compass with me this time, too.
　It's a special compass that Günther made for us.
　It is not a large one to be loaded on a merchant ship, but a small one that fits in the palm of your hand.
　It's not only that, but it's also carefully detailed and designed, and if you buy it in the market, it might not cost less than a few dozen gold coins.

　I took it out of my pocket and tried to check the direction.
　The needle of the compass was spinning, as expected.
　Lilith, who has been peering into it, lets out an 'ugh' sound.

''With this, the compass is useless, isn't it?

I've been expecting you.

　He replied with a single word.

'The World Tree Forest is a sacred place for elves. I expected that there would be a lot of work done to protect it.

This is not a good way to get lost, is it? I'll never starve if I suck the spirit from the flowers, though. Wouldn't it be better to leave Sati behind after all?

　He turns nastily to Sati, but Sati still refuses, shaking her head to the side with a pout.

'It's okay if you get lost. I've prepared some emergency food for you.

　And Sati took out a jar of food from her bag.
　Inside was a yellowish-white substance packed inside.

'What's that?'

　Lilith asks Satie.
　Satie replies, proudly, "It's mayonnaise.

'Mayonnaise?　I've never heard of it.

'It is. Because this is an unknown food product of your master's idea.

Is that so?

　'What do you mean?' asks Lilith.

'Yeah,' I reply.

'What kind of food is this?'

"Egg yolks stirred with vinegar and oil. And a pinch of salt and pepper.

　'Let's see,' he said, opening the lid of the bottle, putting his index finger inside the bottle, scooping it out and bringing it to his mouth.

'It tastes kind of rich, doesn't it? It would go well with vegetables.

That's what we're here for.

But how can this be an emergency food?

That's because they're so nutritious. Eggs are the lifeblood of life. They contain all kinds of nutrients.

I see, but wouldn't an egg go bad very quickly?

'That's okay. With the addition of vinegar, it will last for years at room temperature.

　When Lilith heard this, she was surprised. 'No way,'

　Satie replies.

'It's true. All I have to do is add some vinegar and mix it in and it will keep for a very long time. It's like a magic spell.'

It's not magic. It's just alchemy.

　Eggs are prone to spoilage, but by coating them with vinegar and oil, they remain spoilage resistant.
　The vinegar and oil, and the salt, have a powerful bactericidal effect.
　Whoever created this food first was a genius.
　The nutritional value, the taste, the shelf life, there is nothing to complain about.
　It's a god food.

Also, mayonnaise has a crazy amount of calories. A spoonful of mayonnaise gives you as much energy as a cup of rice.

That's great.

'Yeah, it's perfect for the army. Storage. Easy to carry. Plus they're great on bread. Good for morale.

That's great. We could make a lot of money exporting it.

That's what I'm thinking about. In the meantime, we need to build a chicken farm and an egg mixer, but I'll leave that to Herr Günter.

　I was about to say, and then my words stopped.

　Because Günther was staring at me with an amazing look on his face.
　-- or, to be more precise, he was staring at my rear.

　I'm not going to be able to get rid of it.
　I followed Günther's gaze and turned around to look in that direction, but I didn't see anything.
　Dwarves seem to be able to see at night. They see something that humans can't. I ask them point blank.
　I ask frankly.

"What do you see?　Lord Günther.

　Günther replies instantly.

'Apparently, it's a rough welcome.

...I see.

　As soon as I heard those words, I let out a wry smile.
　At the same time, the elf who had been waiting in the grass stands up and squeezes the string of his bow.　

'A rough welcome indeed.'

　If you look, there were elves in a few of the trees as well as in the grass.
　They were all holding their bows the same way.
　There were both men and women.
　It seems that elves are a race that fights without distinction between men and women.
　They are all uniformly bright-eyed and have pointed ears.
　When I confirm that they are elves and willing to engage in battle, I raise my voice.

''I had heard that elves are a mild-mannered and polite race, but I guess I was wrong. We are emissaries of the Demon King's army. We have no intention of fighting. Please take your hands off the bowstring.

Shut up!　You freaks!　You're not fooling me.

A monster...

　I couldn't help but chuckle.
　My figure, wearing a mask of change and a robe of immortality, was indeed a monster itself.

　I'm not sure if I'll ever be able to find out what they are, but I'm sure I'll be able to find out. Furthermore, they are dressed in maid's clothes in this cold weather.

　I'm sure it's not the first time you've seen a group as suspicious and mysterious as this.
　It's impossible to be wary of them.
　But even so, they must be persuaded.

　It would be folly to engage in battle with them here. It's easy to defeat them, but there is no benefit in fighting with someone who is about to form an alliance with you.

''I repeat, we are emissaries of the Demon King's army. We may look like monsters to you, but I hope you'll consider us a better negotiating partner than the League of Lords.

"...do you have any proof?　No harm will come to us.

'Would it help to convince you if I said yes?　Then I can say all I want.

　Hearing the words, the elves begin to consult.
　It's an unfamiliar language.
　Apparently it's not a common language, but an Elvish language.
　They may have decided that they couldn't hear the elven language, but they were wrong.
　Magicians have a useful power called magic. Their conversations could be detected by the Language Translation.


"Hey, what do we do now?　Do you believe a word they say?

'They claim to be emissaries of the Demon King's army, but is it true?'

Two demons, and a dwarf and a human, isn't that strange?

The other day I heard a rumor that the Demon King's army has an amazing sorcerer who has been adding humans and dwarves to their ranks one after another. His name is Ike, I believe. He is said to have the appearance of an immortal king. Could it be that he is?

If that's the case, shouldn't we be under their umbrella?

What makes you think that?

The man Ike is well known as a very tolerant ruler. At least he'll be treated better than if he were to go down to the League of Kings.

You gotta be kidding me.　We are proud elves!　I will not be under anyone's umbrella!　We're going to protect this forest on our own.

But it doesn't matter how much we try to protect this forest, it's useless in front of a huge army, so we need to keep our heads down.


　After listening to their conversations, I found out that the elves are as proud as they are rumored to be, and that they don't trust the League of Lords and the Demon King's Army.
　And they don't trust the League of Kings or the Demon King's Army.
　Also, the fact that the Elf Queen sent a letter to Günther seems to have been kept a secret.

　I think our first priority is to gain their trust by showing them the letter we received from the Elf Queen.
　I'll be taking out the letter I put in my pocket.

　I was going to say a few words of refusal in order not to alarm the other party, but I didn't have time to do so.

　Because a scream came from the elf who was hiding in the grass.
　If he looked, his back had been cruelly slashed open.
　There was a pure white beast there.
　At a glance, one could tell that it was not a beast of nature.
　It wasn't a wolf or a bear. It was clearly a deformed beast.

　Looking at that figure, Lilith let out a pout.

''A summoned beast........?''

　You're right.

　I'd like to say that I'm right, but I don't have time for that.
　The bloodthirsty beast is staring at the elves, searching for its next target.
　The fact that it doesn't even give us a glance is proof that this guy is a summoned beast.
　The sorcerer who summoned this beast must have ordered us to do so.
　If that's the case, we can't breathe a sigh of relief that we won't be in danger of being harmed.
　I can't bear to see an elf being hunted in front of me.

　I order Lilith to guard Sati.

　Lilith nods, "Yes," as if she's choking, but she still seems to be itching to fight.
　However, I'm grateful that she always follows my orders.

　I made sure that Lilith was close to Sati's side and drew her sword, and now I looked at Günther.
　He didn't need to order him to do so, but he had his battle axe at the ready.
　Even though he hated the elves, he didn't seem to be willing to overlook the danger.
　This man is a trustworthy person, after all.
　Once again convinced of that, he and Günther went towards the white beast.